Motown unsung hero Janie Bradford, co-writer of…
Janie Bradford Hobbs, a key participant in Motown’s early hitmaking machine, has died in Los Angeles at 87.
The longtime LA resident died Saturday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center following an prolonged sickness, her household said.
Bradford Hobbs later turned a acquainted face in town’s music scene, where she ran the Heroes and Legends Awards for about 30 years.
Janie Bradford, left, and George Clinton attend a ceremony honoring Clinton with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Friday, January 19, 2024, in Los Angeles. AP Photo/Richard Shotwell
The annual event honored music icons, handed out scholarships and turned a reunion spot for former Motown stars, according to her household.
She also based Mountain Goat Music and opened the Music Notes Gift Shop in Beverly Hills.
Janie Bradford, second from left, with the Oak Ridge Boys at the American Song Festival on August 1, 1974. Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
But Bradford Hobbs first made her identify in Detroit.
Born in Charleston, Missouri, she moved to Detroit and was launched to Motown founder Berry Gordy in the late Nineteen Fifties by her neighbor, singer Jackie Wilson.
She joined Motown as a receptionist in 1958, finally turning into half of the artistic operation behind the label’s rise.
Bradford Hobbs and Gordy co-wrote “Money (That’s What I Want),” which Barrett Strong recorded in 1959.
The tune turned an early hit and was later coated by The Beatles.
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She also wrote “Too Busy Thinking About My Baby,” first recorded by The Temptations and later made a hit by Marvin Gaye. Her songwriting credit included work for Stevie Wonder, The Supremes, Martha & The Vandellas and others.
“Janie was there with me from the very beginning, before there was even a Motown, and she will always hold a very special place in my heart and in the Motown family,” Gordy said.
“Janie was one of a special group I have always thought of as the original Motown family,” he continued. “She was one of the people who helped make Motown what it became.”
Bradford Hobbs later turned head of Writer Relations for Jobete, Motown’s publishing company.
She is survived by her husband, Wardean Hobbs; daughter, Nicole Hobbs; son, Lance Finney; and two grandsons.
Funeral companies haven’t been accomplished.
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